Maine’s leading politicians are aging all too quickly.

Voters – who have picked the oldest American president for three straight elections – should consider whether that’s a good thing. President Joe Biden’s confusion during his last year in the White House was just one example of how older leaders’ recall and speech can slip alarmingly.

Though you’d hardly know it from watching Pine Tree State politics, there isn’t a requirement that our political leaders collect Social Security.

Let’s start with our two U.S. senators. At 81, Sen. Angus King is old enough that the baby boom hadn’t even begun when he made his appearance in 1944. Sen. Susan Collins, despite her longevity and status in the Senate, is younger at 72. Still, she was born when Harry Truman was in the White House.

They’re both considerably older than 65, the median age of America’s senators, according to the Pew Research Center.

King won reelection last year, so he’s set to remain in office until he’s 86 in 2030. Although that’s getting up there, remember that Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa ran in 2022 for an eighth term at age 89 — and won. That Grassley has already filed to run again in 2028, at age 95, shows he’s an optimist.

If Collins wins reelection next year, she will be 74 when she takes office for another term. Democrats, however, hope they can help Collins retire instead. And they’re eyeing 77-year-old Gov. Janet Mills to make it happen. I have nothing against Mills, who certainly has some spunk, but if she were to run and win, she would be 79 starting her first term as a senator. In short, the prospect of a younger senator from Maine is distant.

Maybe there’s more hope in the U.S. House? Well …

In the 1st District, if Rep. Chellie Pingree wins another term next year, which is likely, she will be 71 at its start. That’s 14 years older than the median age for the House. The 2nd District offers something unique among Maine’s top political posts: an elected official who has decades to go before he becomes eligible for Medicare.

Rep. Jared Golden turned 43 last week. He was still a student at Leavitt Area High School when Collins won her Senate seat. King was governor at the time. But Golden faces a tough challenge next year from77-year-old former Gov. Paul LePage. If LePage wins, he would begin his House service at age 79. Only one House member was older at the start of his term, Illinois’ James Bowler in 1953.

The governor’s race offers the best chance to add someone younger to Maine’s leadership team. Almost everyone eyeing the seat that Mills must leave because of term limits is younger than the sitting governor. Frontrunners range in age from 44 to 65.

Among Democrats, the youngest serious candidate is Hannah Pingree, 48, a former speaker of the state House and daughter of Chellie Pingree. She’s only a little younger than Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, 50, who is also in the running. Several male Democrats with a shot are in their 50s, including former state Senate President Troy Jackson and a senator’s son, Angus King III.

Most of the Republican field is a tad older, including lawyer Bobby Charles at 65 and Sen. James Libby at 64. One exception is Rep. Laurel Libby of Auburn, 44, a former nurse who’s a proven fundraiser with wide name recognition. She hasn’t entered the race yet, but these days sounds like a candidate. There’s also an independent contender who might catch fire: Sen. Rick Bennett. He’s 62.

Old politicians tend to think they’re indispensable. They’re not.

Remembering how things used to be is nice, but there’s a lot more to be said for making sure at least some of our elected officials are in closer touch with our fast-changing society.